This Khajur Imli Chutney is a sweet and tangy sauce made with tamarind (Imli) sweetened with dates, the perfect chutney to use with chaat or as a dipping sauce for your favorite appetizers!
Imli Chutney is a tangy, sour, sweet, and spicy sauce. Who knew you could literally hit all those tastebuds in one dish!
Yep, that’s Imli Chutney for you. Tamarind seems to be an exotic ingredient in North America. But in Asia, it is such an important ingredient – from this Imli chutney that is used in all types of chaat in Pakistan/India to Pad Thai in Thailand.
Once you make this Khajur and Imli sauce, having this tamarind and Date Sauce in your fridge will be a game-changer for so many of your meals and snacks!
A little about the ingredients
Imli chutney is known to be Sweet and Sour. The tamarind hits you with the tang, and the sweetness from dates, brown sugar or jaggery soothes your taste buds for a balanced sauce.
Tamarind – The Tangy
Tamarind typically comes in large concentrated blocks.
It is easily found in Asian grocery stores or even on Amazon!
For this chutney, chop off about 1 cup of the tamarind pulp, then soak and mix it into 1 cup of hot water.
Dates or Sugar – The Sweet
Dates are often used to make the sauce sweet.
We also like that the dates lend to this imli chutney’s thickness and texture.
Pitted dates are the best choice to make this sauce as quick and easy as possible. However, brown sugar or jaggery can also be used to sweeten the sauce. You might have to play around with the proportions to adjust for your taste.
How to make Imli Chutney?
The process to make this Imli Chutney is quite simple. And the best part? It takes less than 30 minutes from start to finish.
Step #1: Prepare the Tamarind Pulp
Add 1 cup of tamarind pulp and pitted dates in 1 cup of hot water and blitz in a blender for 30 seconds.
At this point, before getting ready to cook, you’ll need to strain the mix. The pulp has a lot of fibers.
Strain it with a fine mesh sieve remove any seeds and fibres.
Step #2: Cook
After straining, the sauce just need to cook for 15-20 minutes to come together.
Step #3: Season
Once the sauce has cooked, season with:
- Cumin powder
- Black salt or Chaat masala – These are popular spices in South Asian pantries, and often called for in recipes that are tangy. They can be found in South Asian grocery stores or on Amazon!
- Red chili powder – adjust to taste, to add just a bit of spice to the chutney.
Step #4: Cool
Let the sauce cool to room temperature before using it!
How to store Khajur & Imli Chutney?
The sauce can be stored in an air-tight bottle for up to 2 weeks, or in the freezer for longer.
Mom’s Pro- Tip: Store the Chutney in cubes in the freezer!
When the sauce has cooled, add it to an ice cube tray to freeze solid for a few hours. After it is frozen solid, remove Imli chutney cubes from the tray and store them in a Ziploc bag in the freezer!
How to use Khajur & Imli Chutney?
Imli Chutney is a widely used sauce. You’ll find so many uses for it once you have it on hand!
A popular way to use Imli Chutney is in chaat recipes. Or it can also be a dipping sauce for lots of appetizers and main dishes.
Here are some ideas to help you use up your newly made stash or imli chutney!
Imli Chutney for Chaat
This Imli and Khajur Chutney can be used in any chaat dish. Some popular chaat dishes are:
- Bhel puri – a crunchy snack of puffed rice, vegetables this tangy Imli chutney.
- Dahi puri – crunchy mini puris topped with yogurt, vegetables, and sauces like this imli chutney.
- Chana Chaat – a snack that is a chickpea salad made with chickpeas, vegetables, and then seasoned with this Imli Chutney!
Imli Chutney as a Dipping Sauce
This Imli Chutney is a great dipping sauce. We love to serve it with lots of appetizers or as an accompaniment to grilled meats and kababs! Some of our favorites are:
If you give this recipe a try, we’d love to see it! Tag us on Instagram @thespicemess
Ready to make Imli Chutney?
Imli (Tamarind) Chutney
Ingredients
- 1 cup tamarind pulp
- 1 tsp cumin powder
- 1 tsp red chilli powder
- 1/2 tsp black salt or chaat masala
- 5-10 pitted dates see notes for substitute
Instructions
- Add 1 cup of tamarind pulp and pitted dates in 1 cup of hot water and blitz in a blender for 10-15 seconds. Strain with a fine mesh sieve to remove any seeds and fibres.
- In a small pot, add the blended date and tamarind pulp.
- Bring to a boil. If using brown sugar or jaggery instead of dates, add it at this point.
- Cook on low heat for at least 15- 20 minutes, or until sauce is as thick as desired.
- Remove from heat and add cumin powder, red chilli powder and black salt or chaat masala powder.
- Store in an air-tight bottle for up to 2 weeks, or in the freezer for longer.